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BENGALURU: Additional commissioner of police (traffic) P Harishekaran has said he will request petrol bunks in the city not to supply fuel to helmetless two-wheeler riders. Addressing the media on Friday, Harishekaran said: “ ‘No helmet no fuel’ will be a social boycott concept to prevent fatal and non-fatal accidents. We are requesting all fuel stations to cooperate with the Bengaluru traffic police (BTP) initiative.” Asked if such a form of social boycott will stand legal scrutiny, Harishekaran said, “We are planning to bring in executive orders.” According to him, traffic police shall write to fuel suppliers, seeking their cooperation in implementing the proposal. “Soon, we will hold a meet with petrol bunk owners and tell them how to implement the proposal,” he added. However, the announcement drew mixed reactions. While a few citizens welcomed it, most riders, youngsters and women in particular, derided the decision. Prashanth G, an advocate, called the proposal a ‘violation of fundamental rights’. “The proposal has no legal standing and is impromptu. How can police force bunk owners not to sell fuel to riders without helmet,” he asked. However, HN Ananda, a senior citizen, welcomed the proposal. “It’s for the benefit of the society. For those who think it’s a violation of rights, they must realise that rights can be enjoyed only when one is alive. But I doubt whether it will succeed as it lacks legal support,” he said.

Shalini G, a PG student, said the idea sounds good, but may not get implemented. “I agree that the decision is to safeguard riders. Practically speaking, it’s not possible. I don’t think bunk owners will agree,” she added. N Lakshminarasaiah, a petrol bunk owner, said he will implement the direction. “I know it’s not easy. When we request customers not to use mobile phones near fuelling pumps, many object. I’m sure customers without helmet will argue when we refuse to sell fuel. But if cops ask us to implement it, we will,” he added.

EA Access can now officially claim it gives *ALL* gamers all access, as the service finally lands on PS4.

The gaming subscription service has been on Xbox and all its iterations for 5 years now, but Sony finally joined the gaming party to let players download and play their titles for a monthly fee.

The EA library of games is expansive to say the least, and PlayStation gamers have been missing out on the service that has been a staple part of the Microsoft experience for so long now.

Games like Anthem, Battlefield V, FIFA 19, and NFL 19 are now all ready to download and play on PS4 for the much more affordable monthly subscription fee.

EA Access also constantly updates with all the latest games and gives gamers the chance to play their newest titles early, so if you are thinking about getting FIFA 20, this might be a good option for you.

Players can sign up for £3.99 / $4.99 / AU$6.99 per month, or get a cheaper monthly rate with £19.99 / $29.99 / AU$39.99 per year.

Once you are signed up, the entire library will be open for you to explore, download and play.

A French inventor’s attempt to become the first man to cross the English Channel on a hoverboard has ended in failure after he crashed while trying to land on a re-fueling station in the middle of the Channel, BBC News reports. Franky Zapata, who invented the jet-powered Flyboard Air, took off from near Calais earlier this morning, and had hoped to make the crossing to St Margaret’s Bay on the English coast in around 20 minutes.

Zapata, who was not injured by his fall into the water, had previously indicated that he only thought he had around a 30 percent chance of successfully making the crossing. Nevertheless, his failure suggests that the difficulty of piloting the noisy Flyboard Air means it has limited practical use. The inventor has previously said that it takes a minimum of 50 to 100 hours of practice just to stand up on his invention.

The Flyboard Air that Zapata used in the attempted crossing is powered by five mini turbo engines which are capable of producing around 250 horsepower each. As a result, the hoverboard is capable of reaching speeds of up to 118 mph according to The Guardian. As well as the board itself, the setup also includes a fuel tank filled with kerosene which Zapata wears on his back, and a handheld remote control.

Due to the length of the crossing and the limited range of the Flyboard Air, Zapata had to make a refueling stop in the middle of the Channel. However, he was limited to just a single stop, after the French maritime authority raised concerns about the crossing taking place over such a busy stretch of water.

It was while attempting to land on this refueling platform that Zapata fell into the water, missing the platform by just “a few centimeters,” a member of his team said on BFM television (via Mail Online). The team member blamed the size of the waves for his failure to make the landing, which exaggerated the movement of the deck.

We got our first glimpse of the Flyboard Air back in 2016, when footage emerged of Zapata flying the Flyboard Air above a lake. At the time the footage was so unbelievable that many claimed it had to be a hoax, but as more footage emerged it became clear that the jet-powered hoverboard was real, especially when Zapata set a world record for the farthest hoverboard flight with a 2,252 meter (7,388 feet) long Flyboard Air flight along France’s south coast.

Zapata announced his intention to attempt to cross the 35 km (around 22 miles) stretch of water earlier this month, after making an appearance at France’s annual Bastille Day celebrations where he brandished a rifle as he flew above the crowds. His invention could one day end up being used by the French military, who have expressed an interest in using the Flyboard Air as a logistical or assault tool, according to The Guardian. The French government defense and procurement agency has also invested in the development of the Flyboard Air with a €1.3m grant it gave to Zapata last year.

Tech giant Microsoft has released a beta version of the updated Cortana app for Windows 10. The new experience features a brand-new chat-based UI that is aimed at giving the user the ability to type or speak natural language queries.

The company is testing a new chat-based UI for Cortana on Windows 10 PCs. The new beta app, which was originally spotted last month, is now available to testers, and it supports text and voice queries, The Verge reported on Friday.

These new updates come just days after Microsoft announced it is changing the look of the Xbox One's Home screen and how one can control the console via Cortana. Microsoft's Dona Sarkar and Brandon LeBlanc explained the the new Cortana experience for Windows 10 as is being introduced as a Beta to Windows Insiders in the US.

"Not all the features from the previous Cortana experience are available just yet. As a Beta, we plan to add more features over time with updates to Cortana from the Microsoft Store... Historically, there were quite a few skills that could be used unauthenticated (Bing answers, open apps, Assistant conversations) but this is no longer the case. Only limited skills are currently supported in the new experience. Don't worry we'll be bringing back many skills over the coming months," they add.

In addition to most of the existing Cortana features, the app also supports light and dark themes in Windows, a less intrusive screen for "Hey Cortana" queries, new speech and language models, and better performance.

This new feature is currently being rolled out to Insiders in the US with more regions becoming available at a later date.

This Cortana app is available in the latest Fast Ring preview of Windows 10, build 18945. It would eventually debut to all Windows 10 users in the first half of 2020, the report added.

Earlier this week, Microsoft in a blog post said it is further evolving the way it "support voice commands on Xbox and are moving away from on-console experiences to cloud-based assistant experiences." As per the company, this means users can no longer talk to Cortana via your headset. However, they can use the Xbox Skill for Cortana via the Cortana app on iOS, Android, and Windows or via Harmon Kardon Invoke speaker to power on the Xbox One, adjust volume, launch games and apps, capture screenshots, and more."

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